


Luke's.Stomach Bug

by 5SOSxQueen



Category: 5 Seconds of Summer (Band)
Genre: Crying, Fainting, Fear, Gen, Graphic Depictions of Illness, Hurt/Comfort, Illnesses, Medical, Nausea, Scat, Sickfic, Vomiting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-17
Updated: 2021-01-17
Packaged: 2021-03-15 08:07:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,238
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28810116
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/5SOSxQueen/pseuds/5SOSxQueen
Summary: Luke ends up getting extremely sick before a concert, but has to push through his illness. Just how bad does it need to get for him to be able to rest?
Comments: 1
Kudos: 14





	Luke's.Stomach Bug

Luke's POV:

I came to as I felt myself being shaken awake by a member of my band. On a typical morning, waking up for me was more refreshing. Today, however, I noticed I was more sluggish and groggy... I groaned as my body adapted to the change between being in a deep sleep to feeling like a zombie. I turned to see Ashton's alluring hazel eyes staring into mine. I smiled up at the man when I cast my gaze upon his dorky grin. Leave it to him to have a gleaming smile on his face this early in the morning (maybe it wasn't "early", but that is what my brain implied).

"Good morning, Luke," He beamed. "We have the radio interview to do in a couple hours," He said, glancing at his phone. "Michael, Calum, and I were considering checking out the city after the interview. You know, it would be nice for your peaky self to get some sun anyhow," He joked, pinching my side. I chuckled, staring up at the wood-grained ceiling of the bus.

"Yeah, that's fine," I said, my voice riddled with sleep.

"Come to think of it, you are more pale than usual. You okay?" I assessed how I felt. Thinking about it now, I was not feeling the greatest. I shrugged, and he took that as a cue to check for a fever. He straightened up with a hum.

"Well, you don't feel warm," he concluded. I nodded.

"Maybe I didn't get enough sleep. I will be fine," I assured him, pushing myself into a sitting position.

"Well, it's about to be eight. I suggest you get up and start getting ready for the day," I agreed, and he stood up with a stretch. I shuffled, throwing my legs over the side of the bed, shivering as my feet came in contact with the icy floor. As I rose from my bed, I noted the ache resonating within my stiff muscles. I stretched for a while, trying to ease the pain, before deciding a shower might do me good.

I walked over to my unpacked suitcase and dug through it. When I found a decent outfit, I trekked my way to the small bathroom. I undressed and turned the water on to my preferred temperature and got into the one man shower stall.

A pang of dizziness came and went, leaving me to question whether it was only in my head. I thought nothing of it and resumed washing myself. Just as I had gotten the soap out of my eyes when a light rapping on the bathroom door echoed off of the teal tiled walls. I hadn't gotten the chance to answer before they cracked the door open. I turned off the water. "Hey, sorry to bother you," Michael said from the other side of the door. "I wanted to let you know that we are heading out to breakfast soon. We are going to Denny's. We are not rushing you, but I'm sure it would be best to hit the road sooner rather than later."

"Got it!" I called out. I heard the door close shut again and turned the water back on. I finished washing up and stepped out of the shower. I grabbed the towel off the wrack and dried myself off before getting dressed. Gathering my dirty clothes, I tossed them into our dirty laundry pile and went out into the front of the bus to meet the other lads.

"Hey Luke," Calum exclaimed with a very wide, toothy smile as I walked out.

"Hey Cal," I said, returning the gesture.

"You all freshened up and ready to go?" Ashton asked me. I nodded. He informed the bus driver to take us there. Denny's wasn't too far away, only about five minutes, tops. Arriving at the diner, I noticed that my body felt heavier and fatigued. I was walking slower, leading me to believe the shower had not helped like I thought it had. The dull ache throughout my body ebbed. There was that, at least.

The staff welcomed us with smiling faces and ushered to our table rather quickly. The server, a cute brunette, took our orders. I rested my head on my hands while the other engaged in small talk in our wait. I dozed off slightly, tired enough that I couldn't even keep my eyes open. Calum nudged my side when the food got brought to the table.

"Dude, I cannot believe you got a salad this early in the fucking morning!" Michael mused. The server set the plate in front of Calum with a chuckle.

"What? I was craving salad," Calum defended, throwing a bewildered look towards the man across from him. Ashton shook his head with a light laugh, amused at the scene. Michael got pancakes with strawberries and a side of hash browns and sausage with an orange juice. His eyes widened when the server set his food in front of him. Ashton ordered biscuits and gravy with bacon, while I got a sizzling skillet. As they handed me my food, I smiled at the girl with a quiet nod of thanks. She smiled, told us to enjoy our meal, before walking to help new customers that had walked in.

We all dug in, but after I had eaten a quarter of the skillet, I found it rather unappealing. It tasted great, but it was too greasy for me. I huffed and pushed the food around with my fork, zoning out. "Luke, you alright?" Ashton asked, breaking my trance. I looked up, noticing that all the lads were now looking at me with frowns on their faces.

"Yeah, I guess I'm just not as hungry as I thought," I set my fork down and leaned back with a small sigh. "Any of you guys want it?" I questioned, lifting the pan in the air slightly. I got a couple head shakes from them and set my plate back down. 

"We'll just get a to go box then," Calum suggested, and I agreed. He flagged down a server that was passing by and asked her for one. As unorthodox and disrespectful as it was, I laid my head on the table using my arms as a pillow. I was trying to ignore the tinge of queasiness that was forming in my gut.

Stepping outside, I squinted. The restaurant had been significantly more dim. The harsh light made my eyes throb. Great, I must be starting to get sick, I thought as I stepped back onto the bus. We had at least another two hours of travel.

When I turned to walk into the kitchenette, I nearly toppled over. I turned too fast, causing the dizziness I felt earlier to come back with a vengeance. I stopped dead in my tracks to lean against the wall and felt a hand on my back.

Michael's POV:

I saw Luke stumble as we walked into the bus and quickly put my hand on his back. I couldn't believe how tired he was. He must have been exhausted to be stumbling the way he was.

"Let's get you laying back down, yeah?" He put a hand against his forehead with a slight nod and a hum.

"I got dizzy for a second there." I frowned, leading him over to his bunk.

"You might just need more sleep. Besides the little catnaps, I mean. We have a couple hours, try to get some rest on the way to the interview. We will wake you when we get there," I explained. He collapsed onto the bunk bed, fully clothed, with his shoes on. I chuckled and shook my head, bending down to pry his shoes off for him. As soon as his head hit the pillow, he was out like a light. I was getting worried about him. In all my years of knowing him, I had never seen him this tired.

I walked to the back room where I saw Calum and Ashton go where we first entered. "Hey, Mike, what's up? How's he doing?" Calum asked, glancing at me from his cellphone.

"He's asleep. Do you guys think he's alright? He is sleeping an awful lot today," I asked, taking a seat next to Ashton.

"I asked him how he felt this morning. He said he was fine, but he felt out of it and tired. I even checked to see if he had a fever, but he felt normal, so I don't really know," Ashton rambled as I leaned into him. He wrapped an arm around my shoulders, letting me cuddle into him. I nodded, pulling out my phone to look at Facebook.

I tried to get my mind off of Luke. I knew he would be fine with a brief rest. I grew bored with Facebook within a couple minutes; everything on it was old news. I chuckled my phone to the side and stood with a stretch.

"You guys up to playing a couple matches of PUBG?" I asked, going to fetch my tablet, and theirs if they were interested.

"Sure! I could go for a couple rounds. What about you, Ash?" Calum turned to Ashton, who was engaged in his phone. "Ash?"

Ashton's head snapped up at his name. "Huh? Sorry, I wasn't listening," he admitted.

"Mike wants to play some PUBG. Are you interested?" He repeated. Ashton nodded, putting his phone away. I smiled and rushed to grab the tablets. It had been a while since we played the game together.

We had played about five matches when the bus driver, Dave, came back and let us know that we had arrived at the radio station. I nodded. Calum stood from the couch.

"I'll go wake Luke, you guys head in. We will be right behind you." Ashton and I nodded. We went ahead of Calum and stepped off the bus into the crisp October air.

Calum's POV:

I let the others leave the back room first to avoid being in the way. Once they passed the bunk area, I walked over to where Luke was sleeping. I carefully opened the curtain. He looked so peaceful. I wasn't sure if I wanted to wake him.

"Luke?" I called to see if he was awake. When there was no response, I lightly tapped on his shoulder. Still nothing. "Alright, bud, I got you," I carefully maneuvered my arms underneath his lanky body and lifted him from the bed. Damn... He must be in a deep sleep. I thought. He didn't so much as flinch.

Carefully, I walked down the steps of the bus. Dave was kind enough to make sure I didn't fall. I thanked him as he held the building's door open for me. I walked through the halls for a while until I came across the room the boys were in. Thankfully, there was a couch. I gently placed Luke on it, and he instantly curled in on himself. I frowned and checked his forehead as Ashton had done earlier in the day. I couldn't tell if he had a fever or not. Odd.

"I thought you were waking him up," Ashton said from behind me. I jumped, not expecting someone to be right behind me. I held a hand against my chest as I caught my breath again, whilst turning to face him.

"He's too far gone. I tried waking him up, but he didn't. I figured I would just carry him in and let him sleep un-," Suddenly the door opened, causing me to turn towards it. As if I had predicted it, Matt walked through the doors.

A brief history about Matt: he has been our manager since the beginning and has been a father figure to us all, even more so with Ashton, seeing as how he grew up without a father figure.

I remember that fateful day when an interview went wrong, and the woman asked what our fathers had taught us. That was the only time I had ever seen Ashton lose it in front of the cameras... The poor lady was inconsolable for two hours after the fact. It killed me seeing that.

Anyway, when Matt walked into the room, he instantly noticed Luke laying in a fetal position on the couch. He cocked his head to the side, his brows furrowing.

"What's up with him? Is he okay?" Matt questioned, instantly growing concerned.

"Uh, we aren't entirely sure, if I'm being honest. Besides us going out to breakfast, he's been asleep most of the morning. We aren't sure if he's getting sick or if he's just tired," Ashton answered with a shrug. Matt nodded.

"Well, I hate to say it, but it's almost eleven o'clock. You guys need to get him up. You have five minutes to get him up and get in there," he informed us, pointing into the other room with his thumb over his shoulder.

"Five minutes, thanks Matt." Michael reiterated with a nod. We all thanked him. He went back to what he was doing prior, and we were left with a sleeping, uncomfortable looking Luke.

I walked over to him and shook his shoulder. "Luke, wake up. The interview is in less than five minutes," Luke groaned, turning his head away from me. His hands went to his stomach and his lips smacked together a couple times. Finally, his head turned to me again and his eyes cracked open.

I helped him get up and with that we walked into the room. There was a large table in the center of the room. The lads claimed their seats. Ashton and Luke were sitting on either side of the table closest to Elvis Duran, Michael was sitting next to Ashton, and I chose the seat at the end of the table. We all put our phones on and right after we did, the interview had begun.

"Hey guys, we are here with 5 Seconds of Summer, uh, I saw you guys doing a show outside in Hollywood the other day! They closed off the street," The interviewer said.

"We did," Luke said, almost cheerfully. He glanced down and fiddled with the corner of the paper that was sitting in front of each of us.

"You know, look at where you were a couple years ago, to when we first met you, to now," He mused with a smile on his face.

"Now they let us play shows outside of Sketchers," Ashton joked. Everyone laughed.

"Yeah, it's awesome," Michael added with a giggle.

"Well, I mean a shoe store isn't a shoe store without a 5 Seconds of Summer concert," I glanced over at Luke. He seemed to be fine. He had a smile on his face. He was laughing and joking with us so far; the worry I had earlier was dying down a bit.

Ashton's POV:

Five minutes into the interview, I noticed Luke looking increasingly uncomfortable. He had been laughing every time someone said something funny, but now he was dozing off every two seconds and I could tell he was feeling miserable.

His forehead was glistening with sweat, and I kept seeing him rub his temples. He was fidgeting an awful lot, and even Elvis looked concerned. He stayed professional, though, and didn't let it hinder his show.

Less than a minute later, Luke sighed to the man that he needed to stop. Not even giving anyone time to react, Luke was ripping off his headphones and jumping out of his seat and rushing out of the room. Oh shit, that can't be good...

I jumped up to follow him, and I heard the interview getting cut short. I pushed the door open and went to the closest bathroom. Luke was bent over the sink, washing his face off. "Hey, Luke, are you okay, man? What's happening?" I asked, walking over to him. I pulled some paper towels out of the dispenser and handed them to him. He straightened up, patting his face dry with the towels.

"I honestly don't know, I'm just so fucking dizzy and I'm queasy as hell. I ran in here thinking I was going to be sick, but the urgency faded. Thankfully," Luke sighed and leaned up against the tiles. "I've got a killer headache to top it off." He added.

"Is it a migraine?" He shook his head, groaning after. "Oh, I was thinking, maybe, that was what it was. You're showing all the symptoms of one," Luke's eyebrows furrowed, and he swallowed harshly.

"Do I, do I have a fever?" He asked, looking at me through squinted eyes. I took a step closer and reached to check.

"You do, actually," He huffed. "Well, the interview is over. It ended as soon as you rushed out," he looked upset when I said that, but nodded. "I'll see if Matt can get us a hotel nearby. In the meantime, we should probably get you back on the bus."

"Please, I am dead on my feet right now. If I stand any longer, I think I may faint." My eyes widened.

"Whoa, buddy, I didn't know you felt that bad..." he nodded solemnly, reaching for me. I grabbed his hand and helped him out of the bathroom. I guided him back into the room and Michael and Calum shot up at the sight of him.

"Holy shit! Is he okay?" Calum asked, staring wide-eyed at Luke. Luke groaned and shook his head. Luke audibly swallowed again, only this time, breathless pants followed it.

Luke's POV:

"Ash, I think I'm gonna hurl," I warned. He sat me down in the closest chair and quickly grabbed the bin beside the door. Ashton placed it down in front of him and I hung over it, letting the nausea induced spit fall freely into the rubbish.

Several minutes passed with nothing. Elvis needed to go back on the air in less than one minute. Calum explained that to me and I sat up, my arms going around my stomach. My face twisted into an unreadable expression. I heard Ashton ask Elvis if we could take the bin.

"Of course! I hope he feels better," he said with a smile. "There are some waters in the fridge too, if you guys want some. Cindy will show you where it is," he gestured to the woman in the room and she led us out back into the area we were in before the interview had started. She walked over to the corner of the room and opened the fridge. Huh, I didn't see that before. I thought as she pulled four cold bottles out for each of us to have.

"Thank you," We all said when she handed them to us. She went away, leaving us to our own. Ashton set the bin down since we were heading out and onto the bus. We walked out into the parking lot and we were about halfway when I had to stop. The whirling in my stomach escalated, causing me to dry heave out of nowhere. I shot forward, putting my hands on my knees for support. I felt all eyes on me. We all stood, waiting for me to either be sick or declare it a false alarm.

The feeling eased again, and I felt myself getting frustrated. I stood back up and tossed my head back in annoyance. "Dammit, why can't I just be sick and get it over with already!?" I yelled, tugging at my hair.

"Damn, I don't think we've ever seen you this sick before," I sideways glanced at Calum as he spoke.

"You haven't... and it's embarrassing as fuck," I muttered. "I really don't want to throw up in front of you guys, but I really think I will need to be sick soon," I ghosted my hand over my churning stomach, still feeling the need to be sick, even though it wasn't as prominent as before. I squeezed my eyes shut as a wave of dizziness came crashing down on me again. "Can we please just get to the bus? I really need to lie down... I'm getting dizzy again," My voice seemed to fade out as I grew light-headed.

Calum and Michael quickly grabbed onto my upper arms as my knees buckled, my body going limp like a rag-doll.

"Fuck! Luke, you still with us?" I whimpered to show at least a sign of life, and they all breathed a sigh of relief.

"Right, let's get him to the bus, and quickly." Ash ordered, rushing ahead to the bus doors. The other two lads began walking me in the bus's direction. I was tripping and stumbling almost every step. I felt so uncoordinated...

Ashton rushed back over to us with Dave in his tracks. I closed my eyes, and I felt myself being lifted off the ground. It surprised me Dave was that strong. Once he got me loaded onto the bus, he laid me down on one of the bottom bunks. I could hear hushed voices, then nothing as my tired eyes drifted closed.

Calum's POV:

It was then that I really got a look at him. My God, he looked horrible. His skin was almost translucent, the only color being the slightest tinge of pink on his cheeks. He had dark circles, and he was sweating through his clothes. His hair was plastered to his forehead, sweat being the binding.

I was worried about him. This illness was brought on so suddenly. "Calum?" Michael called out to me. I spun on my heels and saw him standing just a couple feet away from me.

"Yes?" I responded.

"Do you think you could grab some supplies from the store? Dave said he will swing us by Walmart really quick." I nodded, before a thought popped in my head.

"Wait, didn't Matt say he keeps a first-aid kit on the bus somewhere?" I asked. Michael's face lit up with recognition.

"He did! You look for that while I get stuff set up for Luke here," I agreed. I went to the bathroom and searched through the small cabinet under the sink. It wasn't there. I tore the bus apart, trying to find the damned thing, only to come up empty-handed. I plopped down at the small dining table.

"Where the fuck could it be?" I asked the empty air around me. I scratched my head, trying to wrack my brain. I did not understand. Time to call Matt. I pulled out my phone and dialled his number.

Ma- Matt, C- Calum

Ma- "Matt speaking," Matt answered.  
C- "Hey, Matt, I was wondering where we keep the first-aid kit. Luke got way sicker. We need to give him some medicine and I have torn this bus apart and don't see it anywhere." I ranted slightly.  
Ma- "Oh, it's up there with Dave. It's right next to the door. I'm shocked you guys never noticed it before." He chuckled a bit. "Sorry, I shouldn't be laughing, but it's been right in front of you this entire time. I hope Luke feels better soon. You know we have the SiriusXM concert coming up." I sighed.  
C- "Yeah, don't remind me... we are all hoping he gets better by then too." Matt hummed.  
Ma- "I guess we will need to wait and see. Worst-case-scenario, we will need to either cancel or postpone to a later date." I nodded, tapping the table. "Well, I got to go, tell Luke I hope he feels better." I smiled.  
C- "Will do, thanks Matt."  
Ma- "Anything for my boys." I smiled widely and said goodbye before hanging up the phone.

"Alright," I sighed as I got up, relieved that I finally knew where to look. I walked to the front of the bus and looked around. I still didn't see it. "Dave, do you know where the first-aid kit is? Matt said it was up here by the door." I asked him as he got ready to drive again.

"Yeah, it's right above your head." I looked up. Sure enough, it was right by the door, above our heads this entire time. I grabbed it and thanked him. I sat back down at the table and rummaged through it. The first thing I found was the ear thermometer. I just had to find the medicine.

"No, no, no, ah-ha," I said, finally stumbling across some Tylenol for his fever. I looked for some stomach relaxers and found a couple small packs of those. "Perfect!" I smiled, holding the packs of medicine up. I closed the first-aid kit and put it back.

I brought the meds and thermometer over to Mike. "Outstanding, thank you. Hey, what took you so long though?" He asked. I rubbed the back of my neck, feeling awkward by the whole situation.

"Yeah, about that. It took me forever to find the kit. It was above our line of sight at the door of the bus." I explained. Michael made an O shape with his mouth.

"Gotcha," he said. Walking over to  
bunk. He set the packets of meds on the ground next to the water bottle he had set there. "Did you find a bucket by any chance? I didn't see one, and I'd rather we didn't use a trash can," he explained, looking disgusted with the last sentence. I thought back.

"No, I don't remember seeing one anywhere when I looked," he sighed, deflating slightly.

"Would you mind going with Ashton to the convenience store across the street? We need to get some soup and a bucket. I want to stay with him, especially if he gets sick. I'll be able to help him to the bathroom," I agreed and went to the back room where Ashton was.

We left the bus, and we were gone for about five minutes. As soon as we got back, I started cooking the soup and Ashton went to put the bin down.

Ashton's POV:

Michael was checking Luke's temperature as I walked into the bunk area. I frowned, seeing how ill he looked. He was an outright mess, tossing his head back and forth, groaning every second with his eyebrows stitched together. I wasn't even close to him, but I could just tell he was in a world of agony.

"What's the temperature?" I asked Michael, walking further into the crowded space.

Michael flashed the screen toward me. "As of now, high. It's 102.4 degrees," I grabbed the device from his hands to get a better look. Was it really that high? It was... he turned back toward Luke, "Poor guy... he's so sick. I'm shocked he didn't tell us sooner. We gave him plenty of chances," I nodded even if he wasn't looking, not knowing what to say.

"Well, Calum is fixing him some soup right now. Hopefully, he can eat that. The takeout from Denny's probably wasn't the best idea," I sighed. "Well, I was originally coming back to give you this," I held up the brand new bucket in my hands and went to set it down beside Luke's bunk. Before it even touched the ground, however, Luke shot upright, a hand flying over his mouth, attempting to stop the unexpected flood of vomit that had filled his mouth. He wasn't successful though. A couple tiny streams of it were running down his arm and drops fell onto the blanket. He lunged toward the bucket, still in my hands, uncovering his mouth just in time to projectile vomit.

I tightened my grip on the bucket, my hands shaking from the unexpected scare. Michael was cringing as he rubbed the man's tense back.

The sounds coming from him were enough to make even my own stomach churn. He was barking out harsh, gurgling heaves and I could feel the bucket getting heavier the more sick filled it.

Luke's POV:

All the years the lads had known me, they hadn't seen me have anything more than a cold. I was turning over and over as I tried to find a position that eased the sensation of urgency. I was mere seconds away from vomiting. I didn't want them to see me vomit. It was embarrassing and I have always been a loud puker... I wanted to hold it off as long as possible.

I let out a quiet burp. Unbeknownst to me, a rush of whatever was in my stomach would follow it. I jumped up into a sitting position and attempted to stop the mess, only for my stomach to heave again. I could feel vomit dripping down my arm.

I looked beside me with wide eyes, seeing Ashton holding a bucket in his hands. I lunged over it, instantly spewing violently. I hung my sick-covered hand over the bucket as I continued to puke. I had only just started; I wished I could stop.

Mercifully, after one last heave, I caught a break. I spit several times, trying to gather the energy to speak. I lifted my head out of the bucket and noticed that Calum had come in. He was cleaning my hand. Ashton placed the bin on the floor next to me and I swallowed against the lingering nausea. I watched Calum wipe away the remanence of the mess I had made a few minutes prior.

For a while, nobody said a word. I stared at my lap, an uncomfortable tension looming in the air. "Um," Calum started. I peaked at him. "Are you feeling any better after getting sick?" He asked. I just shrugged slightly.

"Do you think you could handle taking some medicine?" Michael finally asked. I shrugged again. He sighed and brought a hand up to rub my knee to comfort me.

"I still f-feel nauseous," I admitted, a slight grimace forming as I felt like vomiting again. I ghosted a hand over the gurgling organ. It rumbled loudly, causing the boys to look at me with shock. I blushed wildly.

"That sounds terrible," Ashton said, sympathetically. My stomach let out another gurgle and my mouth began filling with saliva, hinting to what was about to happen. I grunted and leaned over my knees so I was over the bucket again.

"This sucks," I groaned right before gagging. I gagged again, which led to a heave. I choked up a few small waves of vomit before I finally felt my stomach settle. Once again, I backed away from the bucket, wiping my lips with the back of my hand, not caring how disgusting it was.

I jumped as Ashton's phone rang. We all looked at him. He reached for his phone and checked the caller ID. "Sorry guys, it's Matt. I've got to take this." With that, he answered the phone and walked away.

"You should try the medicine." Michael insisted, picking up the packets of medicine at my feet. I huffed. I wasn't even sure if I could keep anything down. I reluctantly agreed, holding my hand out, figuring it was worth a shot.

Michael's POV:

Luke took the medicine and laid back down. Calum went to clean out the bucket while I walked out to where I had seen Ashton walk to. He was off the phone and was conversing with Dave. I walked over to him. "Ah, Mike, I was just about to head back there to tell you guys. Matt told me he booked us a room at the New York Hilton Midtown. I had texted him about Luke a couple minutes ago and I told him he's just been sick. He figured we could use the rest of the day today and tomorrow off until soundcheck the day after," Ashton explained once he saw me walk up.

"That's good. At least Luke will have time to recuperate. Let's pray he's better by then." Ashton pushed away from the bus's dash and wiped his dusty hand on his black jeans, leaving a greyish stain behind. He looked down at his pants and tried to brush it off before giving up after a few measly attempts.

"We could all use the time off, honestly," he replied, brushing passed me and plopping down on the dining bench. I sat across from him and looked out the window. Dave started the bus, finally pulling away from the radio station. Just then, Calum emerged from the bunk room after setting the bucket next to the bunk. He walked over to the two burner stovetop with a hum.

"What should I do with this?" He asked, turning to us with the pot of lukewarm soup.

"We could eat it for lunch," Ashton suggested. I shrugged with a small nod. I was getting hungry anyway, seeing as how it was passed lunchtime.

"Cool. Well, let me reheat it then it's all your guy's," Calum inferred, putting it back on the burner to reheat it. It was a chicken noodle soup. To explain the importance of the chicken soup and the occurrence at Denny's earlier that morning, our bassist had switched to a vegetarian diet a couple weeks ago. I could not do something like that even if I tried. I loved meat too much to give it up. I always picked on him for it. It's all in fun and he knew it.

He poured us each half of what was in the pot and placed the bowls in front of Ashton and I. We thanked him and dug in. Since we didn't get much, it only took us about four to five spoonfuls to eat.

He collected our dishes just as we were pulling into the hotel parking lot. Dave parked and came back to let us know we had arrived. Ashton sighed. "Who's waking him?"

"I will," I volunteered. I walked back into the bunk area and pulled back Luke's curtain. He didn't even seem to be asleep. "Luke?" I called. He instantly opened his eyes and his eyes locked on mine. "You okay, bud?" He just shrugged.

"What's up?" He questioned, sitting up on his elbow.

"We are at the hotel. Do you think you will be okay getting to the room?" He hesitated, but nodded and sat up completely.

"'M feeling marginally better after taking that nap. Not sure how long it'll last, but hopefully it continues to get better. Heh, knock on wood there," he chuckled dryly and knocked on the wood supports for the bunk. I snickered and helped him up. "Is everything packed?" I groaned and facepalmed, realizing none of us thought to pack for the two days stay in a hotel. "I'm guessing it's safe to assume that is a no then?" I nodded bashfully.

"Go ahead and sit down. I'll take care of it," I offered. He smirked at me and walked into the kitchenette of the bus. I heard mumbling as I walked to the back room, where we kept our suitcases. Thankfully, laziness played out sometimes. It didn't take long at all to get mine and Luke's packed. In fact, I had already finished by the time Ashton and Calum filed in to pack thier's.

"Damn, Mike, did you already pack your bag?" Ashton asked, eyeing mine. I nodded and smiled.

"I also got Luke's done. You two are just slowpokes," I teased, sticking my tongue out at them. I grabbed both bags and met with Luke.

We waited until they finished packing before stepping off the bus and into the hotel. I wasn't sure what to make of the grand, yellow, interior. We went to the front desk, and the receptionist gave us the room key.

"What floor is room 823 on?" Ashton asked to make sure we didn't get lost.

"Floor eight. The elevators are just to the left. Over there," she pointed in the general direction. We nodded, picking up our bags again. We filed into the elevator. Once the door shut, the elevator jerked upward. I peaked at Luke to see how he was fairing. Not well. He had his hand over his stomach again. I observed him as the elevator rose. The elevator jolted to a stop, and the doors opened. I checked the indicator above the doors and it showed that we were only on the third floor. Luke attempted to straighten up when two elderly women stepped in.

They got off on the next floor. Luke looked worse for wear. He was slouching a great deal and leaning against the wall. "Luke?" I touched his shoulder, beyond worried at this point. He was dripping in sweat. Instead of answering, he suddenly heaved, bringing up mostly water and froth.

There was a collective gasp from all of us. "Shit! Luke, why didn't you say anything?" Calum screeched, jumping back from the splash zone. Luke panted out a weak apology.

After what seemed like forever, we were on our floor. To think, there are forty-five floors in this hotel... we were lucky to get the eighth one. We rushed to get Luke into the room, laying down with a bin beside him. It had taken a few twists and turns that were nauseating even for a healthy person, plus a couple of false alarms, but we made it. 

As soon as we stepped foot into the room, Luke darted off to the bathroom, retching loudly into his palm along the way. Calum followed him, giving Ashton and I time to get one of the bunks set up for him. 

"Who's sharing the bed with him?" Ashton asked. I shrugged.

Ashton's POV:

"You know what? I'll watch over him. You've been doing a lot since we got back." I insisted.

"Shouldn't we include Cal in this conversation?" Michael retorted with a raised eyebrow. I felt my face heat up a bit. Whoops. I was so used to being the dad of the band and always stepping in, I had forgotten Calum.... I nodded, continuing to set up Luke's side of the bed.

Half an hour of listening to retching, we heard the shower start. We both assumed Calum was helping Luke wash up. He had been sweating heaps as well as being sick on himself once or twice. It made sense. 

Michael checked on them to see if they needed any help. I didn't hear the answer, but he came back with a slight shrug of his shoulders. 

Calum came out practically dragging Luke out of the bathroom. He brought him to the bed, gracefully dropping him onto the cloud-like bed. Luke didn't even react. 

I looked at the time on my phone. It wasn't too late, just after six, but I was feeling beyond drained. I was having difficulty keeping my heavy eyes from closing. Logically, I probably wouldn't have been able to stay up to watch Luke, even if I tried.

"Ashton?" Calum called. I turned my gaze over to him. "I don't know if you heard me, but I said I'll take care of him tonight. You look beat. How about you go to bed?" He suggested. It didn't take me much to agree. I stripped down to my underwear, not giving a shit if I was sharing the bed with Mike. I shimmied under the covers and was out like a light as soon as my head hit my pillow.

Luke's POV:

I was jarred out of my sleep mid-heave. I had only just managed to get my head above the bin. Even over the sick feeling, the only thing I could focus on was the overwhelming urge to use the bathroom. Fuck... please, no... Tears ran down my cheeks.

I clenched hard, trying not to lose it from the other end as I heaved again. I felt a warm hand running along my spine. As much as I wanted to take in the comfort, I felt way too ill.

"I've, hm," I whined, still trying to find my voice. "I gotta go to the bathroom. M'stomach-" A massive cramp had me doubled over, renewing the nausea, making me wonder if I was truly finished vomiting.

Arms hoisted me up. I could barely put one foot in front of the other as I was being walked to the bathroom by my friend. Another painful cramp had me nearly dropping to my knees. At that point, I was just hoping I could get to the bathroom without incident. It was bad enough they had seen me hurl up my entire stomach. I didn't want any of them to witness me shitting myself too...

Whoever it was was trying to talk to me, to distract me, but I couldn't even focus on the things they were saying. As soon as the toilet was in sight, I was yanking my pants and underwear down. I had just barely made it. I felt my upper stomach give a violent lurch and quickly grabbed the bin next to the toilet. I wretched before I could even fully put it into my lap.

Whoever had brought me into the bathroom had sat on the edge of the tub and gently grazed their nails against my back as I lost it from both ends. My face flushed, but I couldn't be bothered. I had no choice but to let the sickness run its course.

It took forever. I could finally set the bin down and see who it was that was with me. It was Calum. He was staring at me with such sadness and empathy in his eyes. I felt much more embarrassed now.

"I-I'm so sorry you had to see all of that," I expressed, my voice wavering as I tried not to choke on the tears.

"Hey, don't worry about it. Are you feeling any better now?" He asked. I nodded truthfully. I just felt utterly empty, almost uncomfortably so. "Do you think you are safe to leave the bathroom then?" I nodded again, and he stood up, his hands going to his lower back with a stretch. "I'll leave you to clean yourself up. Holler for me when you are finished. I'll just be right outside the door," I muttered an okay, and he quietly shut the bathroom door.

I cleaned up and rinsed my mouth out at the sink. I cupped some water in my hands and took a couple sips, being too thirsty to care about it being straight from the tap. I grabbed onto the counter as I checked my reflection in the mirror. God, was it a sight... I looked like a zombie straight out of a horror film. I splashed some water on my face in an attempt to make myself look more lively before calling out to Calum. 

He opened the door and helped me out of the bathroom. I was feeling quite dizzy seeing as how I had thrown up what felt like all the liquids in my body. 

I was shocked, stepping out of the bathroom. The room was brightening up. I had surprisingly slept for the full night until dawn, when I nearly upchucked down my entire front.

Calum sat me back down on the bed. I smacked my lips together, trying to gather any amount of moisture for my dry mouth. The tap water had done nothing to quench this insatiable thirst. "Cal, could I please have some water?" I begged. He was just sitting back down himself, so I felt a little bad for asking him.

"Of course," he complied, getting up and walking over to the mini fridge in the room. He pulled out a small water bottle and handed it to me. "Go slow. You don't want to make yourself sick again," I opened the bottle and gulped a couple of times before slowing down. I let out a sigh of relief. I set the half empty bottle on the nightstand and laid back down. Calum pulled the blankets over me.

"Thank you, Calum," I smiled up at him. He returned the gesture with a small nod. "'M goin' back to sleep," I mumbled, rubbing at my tired eyes. Calum chuckled.

"Me too. Do you need anything else though?" I shook my head, turning into my side, already feeling myself dosing. I heard the sheets ruffling from behind me, telling me that Calum had gotten back into bed.

I sighed quietly to myself, thinking about tomorrow's concert. Was I even going to be better by then?

Calum's POV: 

"Hey, Cal, could you wake Luke up and ask him if he wants anything to eat?" Ashton asked, walking back into the room in nothing but a towel.

"Sure," I sighed, not really wanting to wake him. We had all been up for several hours and it was approaching eleven. None of us had eaten yet. "Luke," I shook his shoulder slightly, earning a small grunt. "Are you hungry at all?" I asked him. He buried his face in his pillow, groaning into it. "An actual answer would be nice," I teased. He faced me, squinting at me.

"I guess I could have some toast or something. I'm a little hungry," His lips twitched upwards, and I smiled. 

"That's good! Maybe it was just a twenty-four-hour thing," he shrugged slightly, burying his face back into the pillow. He mumbled something into it. I tried to ask him what he said, but all I got from him were snores. I shrugged and relayed the information to the others. 

Once Ashton got dressed, we headed down to the buffet. We scarfed a couple plates worth of food and Michael got Luke's toast before we headed back to the room. 

Luke was out of bed when we got back inside. I frowned when I noticed the bathroom door was shut. I pointed it out to the others. I walked over and knocked on the door. Upon listening, I could hear running water.

"Yeah?" Luke barked out a response. I heard a couple squeaks as he shut it off so he could hear me.

"Just checking up on ya. How are you feeling?" I hollered through the solid wood door of the bathroom. I stepped back as the door clicked. He opened it a crack, revealing a dripping wet Hemmings, in nothing but a towel. He sighed, leading me to fear the worse.

"I'm actually feeling better. I just felt gross. I woke up some time after you guys left in a pool of sweat," he shuddered as he pictured it. "Do you think I could go with you guys to look around the city?" My eyebrows raised in suspicion.

"You are really feeling better?" I quizzed. He nodded. I crossed my arms in thought. "Well, let's talk to Ash and see what he thinks. If he feels you are fit to go out, then I don't see why not," a grin spread across his face and he briskly nodded his head. I chuckled, shaking my head as he hurriedly closed the door. I left to talk to the others.

"How's he doing?" Michael asked when he saw me approaching.

"He's doing a lot better. He wants to go out still. I believe he thought we would go with him as ill as he was and leave him by himself," I frowned and so did the other two. " I guess, to be fair, we did leave him alone while we went to eat..." I sighed.

Ashton sighed and messed with the sleeve on his shirt. "Well, I'm sure the smell of food wouldn't have done his stomach any favours. Anyway, if Luke doesn't have a fever anymore and if he can keep the toast down for another hour, I suppose we could still walk around the city," he explained.

"I personally still think Luke should stay in, but I don't particularly want to make Luke upset," Michael spoke up. Truthfully, I could see where he was coming from.

"I'm worried he is going to get bad again while we are out," I said with a light huff.

"Do you guys think we should stay in then? We could always just have a movie day," Ashton suggested.

"Please let me go..." all of our heads turned at the sudden frail sounding voice coming from behind us. "I even made sure to dress warm, see?" Luke raised his hands up in front of his face slightly, showing off his sweater, which was a size or two too big; he was swimming in it. 

At that point none of us could really say no. He cracked a watery smile, and we explained our terms to him, to which he quickly obliged. An hour and a half later, after he managed to keep the toast down, we all found ourselves strutting down the streets of New York. 

We were in awe at the beauty of it all. We never got over traveling the world. It was mesmerizing to see all of its wonders.

We were laughing and having fun for a couple hours. That was until he started feeling like shit again. He slowed down significantly, unable to keep up with us. Our worry grew. We came to a stop to let him rest and recover. We were all caught off guard by the sudden sob that escaped his lips as he cradled his head, using the storefront wall to slide down to the ground. He muttered that he felt dizzy. At that point, Michael was already hailing a taxi back to the hotel.

When we got there, Luke immediately ran into the bathroom. I was right behind him, only to have the door slammed in my face. The lock didn't turn, much to my surprise.

Luke, you okay in there?" I asked. I got no answer, causing me to frown. My frown deepened upon hearing harsh, echoed coughs. I opened the door with no hesitation. Luke was back in the position he was in this morning, on the toilet with the bin in his hands. I sighed. I sat on the edge of the tub again. "I thought you were feeling better..." he let out a painful sounding dry heave. I shuddered, hearing liquid hitting liquid followed by sputtering gas. Gross... I stayed silent, not wanting to make the situation more uncomfortable for him than it already was.

Luke groaned and tossed his head back, taking several cautious breaths. He had tears running down his cheeks. I reached over and whipped them away with my thumb. He just shut his eyes and nuzzled into my touch. It was adorable, honestly. 

He felt really warm. His skin was blazing under my touch. I cursed under my breath and went over to the sink to wet one of the spare rags the hotel provided. I draped it around Luke's neck. He instantly seemed to melt.

"Oh, that feels nice," he moaned, relishing in the feeling. I would have laughed if I wasn't so concerned.

"I'm sure it does, you are burning up, Luke," his eyes seemed to glaze over, then slowly shut. "You okay?" I asked. His head dropped suddenly, and he went limp. I made a quick grab for the bin and pushed him back against the back of the toilet. "Guys! I need some help in here!" I screamed.

Michael and Ashton came running in. "Oh, shit, did he pass out?" I nodded, and they quickly helped me clean him up and get him back to the bed. "Fuck, he's on fire!" Ashton exclaimed, touching his hot cheeks. He went from his cheeks to forehead, back to his cheeks again. "Michael, go get a towel and run it under cold water. We need to get his fever down. See if you can also find the thermometer. It should be in my suitcase somewhere," Michael rushed off to do so while I waited for instructions. "Cal, help me strip him down to his underwear," I nodded.

Michael came back just as we were finishing up. He laid the wet towel over Luke's unconscious body before going to tear through Ashton's suitcase. Ashton grabbed a folder that was on the nightstand and began fanning him.

Luke came to after a while and we all sighed in relief. He was in a daze as he took in his surroundings. He gagged and bile dribbled down his chin. Ashton wiped it off with the corner of the towel. He gagged again, bringing up a small mouthful. He furrowed his eyebrows, still too out of it to realize what was happening.

Michaell found the instrument after throwing practically everything on the floor. He handed it to me and I handed it over to Ashton since he was the closest. Ashton put the folder back on the nightstand and slipped the thermometer under Luke's armpit. We waited anxiously for the beeping. He was quick to pull it out as soon as it started. He cursed and threw it down onto the table. I grabbed it and felt myself pale as I read the numbers.

"104.7," I read aloud.

"Fucking hell!" Michael swore in disbelief, yanking the thermometer from my hands to check himself.

"I think we should call the medic. Do you guys know who's on call?" Michael asked. Ashton and I both shook our heads. We always have had two medics on our team (maybe more, but as far as we have seen, it's two), Cash and Fenton. 

"Just call Matt. Explain what happened," Ashton ordered. Michael nodded, dialling his number before stepping out of the room. I took a seat at the foot up the bed and watched Ashton attempt to clean Luke up again. 

"Man, he got really sick... I have never seen him this bad before." I said, whipping at my eye, trying to prevent a tear from escaping. 

"None of us have, Cal. The only time I could think of him being sick like this, he wouldn't let any of us over, and that was back in, like, 2012," Ashton looked at me over his shoulder as he reminded me. Now that he mentioned it, I did vaguely remember that. 

My eyes narrowed when I saw Luke's eyes flutter shut. "Did he just fall asleep?" I asked. Ashton's forehead creased, and he lightly shook the boy's shoulder.

"Luke," he called. Shaking yielded nothing. Calling out his name had the same result. "And he's out again. Fuck!" Ashton yelled, worry flying through the roof.

"Guys, Fenton is on his way," Michael explained from behind me. I jumped. He appeared out of nowhere. "Uh, sorry..." he chuckled, rubbing his neck awkwardly. 

"I wish it was Cash, dammit. He's always way kinder than Fenton." I briskly nodded, totally agreeing with Ashton on that one.

Matt's POV:

I immediately gathered my things mid-meeting to get to the boys. I rushed out of the room, giving a brief description of the situation while I rushed out the door. The rest of management couldn't argue with me leaving. 

I met with Fenton outside of the hotel. He had a lot of questions that I couldn't even answer, seeing as how I haven't been with the lads.

When we got upstairs, I was shocked. Michael had told me what had happened, but I had no idea what I was walking into. The room was in shambles. There were clothes all over the floor, a couple towels tossed carelessly about, and the room was filled with a pungent acidic order. I stepped further into the room and laid eyes on the source. Luke was covered in vomit. Ashton was trying his best to clean up, but there was too much. I wrinkled my nose in disgust. 

"What the fuck happened in here? Did a twister blow through?" Fenton asked rhetorically, sarcasm laced in his voice. All the conscious bodies in the room glared at him, including me. He just rolled his eyes. "God, you guys can't even take a joke," he snapped, walking over to the bed Luke was on. I followed him, taking note on his obnoxious behavior. 

"How about you just focus on the situation at hand instead of cracking shitty ass jokes while our friend fights to wake back up?" Ashton retorted angrily. Fenton rolled his eyes again, grumbling something under his breath, and I shook my head. Why was he even on our team? 

Ashton's POV:

I watched as he started to feel Luke's forehead for a fever and gently patting his cheeks a few times. I rolled my eyes at his awful attempt. "You aren't even doing anything!" I snapped at some point. "Act like a fucking medic and wake him."

Fenton glared over at me and rolled his eyes yet again. "It takes a while for someone to wake up, there is nothing that I can do."

I was fuming by then. I was about to yell louder than he had ever heard me, but I saw Luke stir around in the corner of my eyes and all my attention went back to him. "Luke?" I asked quietly, going more towards him and gently shaking his shoulder. 

Luke whimpered and slowly opened his eyes. "Mmm, what happened?" he whined. Then he winced and squeezed his eyes shut. "Head hurts. Ash, I'm gonna be sick" he mumbled quickly. 

I gasped and quickly stood up from the bed, looking for a bucket. Thankfully, there was a little trash bin in the corner of the room, so Calum saw it and handed it to me just in time. I put the bin under Luke's chin and he threw up almost instantly. 

"Yup, this seems very bad, just what I expected," Fenton said, tapping on his chin.

I wanted to punch him, and I was never violent. I looked over at Luke who was still being sick, dry heaving most of the time. I looked over at Matt worriedly, knowing that Fenton wasn't any help at all. "I think he needs to be taken to the ER." 

"No!" Luke screamed. "N-No hospitals. Can't you just take care of me, Fenton? Please," he begged, his bottom lip quivering. Fenton huffed and stood up.

"Fine. I'll have to get you on an IV and get you started on some fluids," Luke whimpered but agreed nonetheless. Fenton went to go talk to Matt.

Luke's POV:

Hushed whispers filled the hotel room, too quiet for me to make out what Matt and Fenton were saying. He left the room and Matt came over to the bed.

"Hey, mate, he had to go down to his car to get the equipment. He will be back as soon as he's got it," I gave a small nod of acknowledgement.

"I'm scared... I hate needles," I whined. Ashton combed his fingers through my hair and shushed me.

"We are all right here, Luke. You will be alright, okay?" I wanted to believe him, I really did, but my mind was in a frenzy.

Fenton walked in shortly after with a bag of saline tucked under his arm. I let out a quiet cry as my fear was amped up a notch. Ashton shushed me again and wiped the tear that was traveling down the side of my cheek.

Fenton took the picture that was hung up next to the bed off the wall and used the nail to hang the bag from. He messed with tubes and prepped the kit he brought up.

I squeezed my eyes shut as he tied the tourniquet tightly around my arm. I could feel my arm turning cold due to the sudden restriction of blood flow. He rubbed the inside of my elbow with an alcohol wipe and I grew sweaty, knowing what was about to happen.

I yelped when the needle punctured my skin. I instinctively tried to shuffle away from the source of the pain, only to have Fenton grip my arm tightly. I ignored the light-headedness that was looming over me again.

"It is not that bad. Quit being a baby," Fenton glared at me and I gulped. I listened. I knew I was putting my life in his hands and I shouldn't do anything to make him mad.

"S-Sorry. I just have a mild phobia of need-les," I explained, my voice crackling a couple times. 

"Whatever, just quit moving," he demanded. He tapped the drip in place and fiddled with the bag again. A few seconds later he undid the tourniquet and my breathing quickened pace when I felt my arm starting to tingle from the foreign fluid.

"My arm feels weird," I told him, hoping he could do something.

"Yeah, it's going to," he stated, beginning to take my vitals. I sighed and closed my eyes. I heard him hum, and I looked over at him with half-lidded eyes, feeling increasingly gross. "Damn... your heart rate is through the roof," I groaned, turning my head away, and I closed my eyes. He took off the pulse oximeter, opting to measure it the old fashion way: feeling for it with his fingers and timing it with his watch.

"Is that bad?" Calum asked. Fenton ignored his question in favour of keeping track of the time. When he was done he glanced up at him.

"It can be. The fluids should help bring it down," he turned to me. "You aren't having any trouble breathing, are you?"

"'M really nauseous," I rasped.

"That's not what I asked, Luke. Answer the question," Fenton demanded.

"Are you going to throw up again?" Matt cut in. I shrugged. "The bins right by you if you need it," Fenton growled at the man and continued.

"Are you having any trouble breathing?" I barely shook my head, but it was just enough for him to see.

"Okay, that's good," he sighed. "Just let the fluids do their job. You should feel better after getting a few of these bags in you," he explained. He looked up at the bag. "This needs to go faster..." he stood up again and squeezed the bag, making me whine at the feeling. I felt chilled, and it wasn't the average cold, it was a deep ache that penetrated my bones. My teeth chattered. 

Ashton went to the other side of the bed and covered me with the blanket. They already had sick on them anyway... "Th-Th-Thank you, A-Ash," Ashton briefly smiled and sat on the bed. He got under the covers with me. "No, y-you'll get d-dirt-dirty," I weakly attempted to push him away, but he just grabbed my hand and lowered it.

"I've already got vomit all over me, Lu. It's fine. How about we both take a warm shower when you are feeling all better, yeah?" I nodded. A warm shower sounded nice.

I cuddled with Ash for around thirty minutes, before my stomach started gurgling. I shuffled on the bed, letting out a pathetic sounding whine. It lurched hard, making me dive to the edge of the bed. A disgusting throaty gag forced its way out and I ended up dry heaving for several minutes. 

Fenton rose from his position after I was done. "I need to switch the bag and check your vitals again," I nodded, too tired to do anything else. He stuck the thermometer in my mouth. "Well, your temperature has gone down. It's almost normal, actually. How are you feeling?" I took the time to assess my body. 

"I f-feel better now. I'm mostly just nauseous and cold, well, and a little sore from throwing up s-so much," he nodded.

"Your heart rate is down too. Looks like you're improving pretty quickly." I smiled at that.

"Good, um, Fenton?" I hesitated, not sure how to word what I was about to say.

"Yes?" He replied, looking over at me.

"I have to go to the bathroom. Really bad..." he rolled his eyes with the slightest grin on his face. That was the gist time I had ever seen him show any emotion besides anger, even if it was small. He undid the PICC line, seeing as how we were in between bags, and he allowed me to get up. "Thanks," I mumbled. He briefly nodded and I, with some help from Michael, made my way to take a piss.

After I was done in the bathroom, Michael cleaned me up and when we walked out, I realized that Fenton had moved over to the clean bed. Looked over at Mike in confusion. It must have been planned, and the smirk on his face proved it. I thanked them and got under the fresh sheets.

I fell asleep for most of the remaining time that Fenton was there. He had woken me up to ask how I was feeling and to remove the IV. I didn't even hear him or Matt leave. 

The next time I opened my eyes, it was the next morning, and I had to piss like a fucking race horse. I sat up, instantly noticing that I had way more energy. I didn't even feel like barfing anymore. I let out a sigh of relief.

Michael's POV:

I walked into the main room and saw that Luke was sitting up. "Morning, sleeping beauty. How are you feeling this morning?" I asked.

"Like I'm about to piss my pants," He deadpanned, curling up slightly. With the amount of liquid that was given to him the night before, I was half surprised he had woken up to dry sheets. 

"Alright, do you need help getting to the bathroom?" I asked, going to lend a hand. He shook his head.

"I think I got it," he got to his feet with a brief struggle. He even got there just fine. I knew he had to be feeling better, but I was still a little worried about the concert tonight.

"Mike, where's Luke?" Calum asked. I spun around and saw him walking over to me.

"He's in the bathroom. He said he's feeling a lot better." 

"That's great! Hopefully, he can eat the eggs and toast we brought him," I agreed and Ashton joined us as we sat at the table and made small talk.

Luke stepped out of the bathroom and came to sit with us. Ashton pushed the plate in front of him and Luke seemed happy to eat, which made all of us thrilled. It was a lot better to see him eating rather than throwing up and in pain.

"So, Luke, you are feeling better?" Ashton questioned. Luke nodded and swallowed.

"Yep! I'm just a bit sore. I don't feel sick at all. It's almost like the passed couple of days didn't even happen," he explained with a mouthful of eggs. 

"Do you think you will be alright to do the concert tonight?" I asked as he shoveled another fork full into his mouth.

Luke nodded to my surprise. "Think I'll be okay" he said, giving a thumbs up while chewing happily. I was glad to see him smiling again.

The rest of the day went pretty well actually, we all mostly just realized until it was time for the concert. 

We did soundcheck, which sounded great honestly. We got into our dressing rooms and had about two hours before we were actually meant to be on stage. 

I was sitting on the couch, scrolling through Twitter when I heard someone approaching me. 

"Mikey," Luke said sadly. I looked up and saw him with his hand over his stomach and frowned. Oh, no. "I'm starting to feel bad again," he mumbled.

I sighed. He was getting sick again right before we were to go on stage to perform. I patted the spot on the couch next to me and he sat beside me. I slid his hair back and felt his forehead. "You're a little warm, I can't tell if it's a fever though." I explained. "You sure it's not just nerves?" I asked. 

Luke shrugged. "Don't know. I really don't want to be sick again. What if I puke on stage?" he asked, clearly starting to get worked up. 

"Hey, calm down. I'm going to ask someone for meds, just lie here and breath, alright?" I suggested. He nodded, so I got up and went out of our dressing room and went to the first person I saw from our team. "Do we have any medicines? Luke has been sick for the past few days and he's feeling unwell again," I explained. 

The woman paused to think. "Um, I would have to check. What is it for?" She asked.

"It's his stomach. He's feeling really nauseous. He's a little worried about going out on stage," the woman gave a sympathetic nod.

"Okay. Like I said, I would have to check with the medics and see if they have anything," she turned to walk away. I quickly grabbed hold of her sleeve and she turned to look at me again. "Sorry, I thought we were done with the conversation," I glanced away from her for a second, trying to pull my thoughts together. I had kind of forgotten why I stopped her.

"Uh, yeah, if Cash is here, could you possibly bring him back to check him out really quick? I just want to make sure he is alright to perform," I spouted after a second of thought and her looking at me like I was crazy. She laughed and nodded. I let her leave.

I walked back into the dressing room. The other two boys were waiting outside the bathroom for Luke. I stopped dead in my tracks with a quick sigh and my head dropped my head. "Yep, it is exactly what you think," Calum said with a wince. Just after that I heard a throat shedding heave.

I put my palms over my eyes and tossed my head back in mild frustration. "This is just brilliant.... This is just great!" I yelled. I wasn't angry at Luke. I was mad at the fact he wasn't better.

"What are we supposed to do? We can't go on if he is being sick like this," Calum explained. 

Before anyone else could answer, Luke came out, looking a lot worse then this morning. His eyes were teary and bloodshot and his face was pale, almost green. I felt my heart break for him. 

"Awe, come here" Calum cooed, taking Luke into his arms and hugging him tightly. 

"I don't feel good... I don't want to go on..." Luke said. His stomach audibly gurgled, and he groaned, almost gagging into Calum's chest.

Luke pulled away from Calum's embrace, looking unsure. He glanced back over to the bathroom with a thick swallow. He groaned and closed his eyes.

"Why don't you just lay down on the couch for now? We will bring a bin over in case," I asked, lightly gripping both his shoulders. 

"Um, I-uh, I think I need to-go-" He choked out. One of his hands shot to his mouth. He broke free from my hold and dashed back into the bathroom. He didn't even have time to close the door. We watched him crash to his knees in front of the toilet, immediately bringing up some bile. He struggled to bring anything else up.

The door to the dressing room clicked open while Luke was in the middle of a loud, violent, and painful sounding dry heave. It was Cash. His face dropped the second he heard the state Luke was in.

Cash's POV:

I was setting up for the show when a young brunette lady walked up to me, claiming to have a message from Michael. I frowned when she told me. Luke was sick, and he had been sick for a while. I wish I had been told before.

I grabbed my fully stocked med bag and headed over to the boys' dressing room. I wanted to put on a smiling face as I walked in, but right when I opened the door I could hear Luke throwing up. I huffed out a sigh and shut the door. There would be no way Luke could perform.

"Hey boys," I greeted. They all said their greeting, minus the lead singer since he was held up at that moment. His dry heaves were harsh. I squeezed passed the boys to get to the young man. I put my hand on his back. He hiccuped, sparing a second to see who it was, before getting right back to it. His stomach really wasn't giving him any breaks. "Just take some deep breaths, Luke. It'll help you relax. Follow my breathing. In through the nose and out the mouth, okay? One, two, deep breath. Hold it, and out," he gagged at first, but eventually, his stomach calmed down enough that he could sit back. "There you go. You feeling any better?" He nodded.

"Tha-thank you Ca-ash," he said, breathing heavily still. "I don't think I've been th-this nau-nauseous in my l-life..." I gave him a look of empathy. Been there, done that myself. Being nauseous is never fun.

"Well, I have some medicine for the nausea in my bag," I held up and finger, signalling him to wait a minute while I rummaged through my bag. Ah, there it was. I popped out the little purple tablet and handed it to him. "Just place that under your tongue and let it melt," he was quick to listen. 

"Mm. It tastes kind of good," he smiled. I nodded with a laugh.

"Doesn't it?" I asked rhetorically, putting the pack of anti-nausea medicine back into my bag. "Let's get you on the couch now," I helped him to his feet, and he wobbled and swayed as soon as he was upright. The color drained from his face and I was quick to grab him. Thankfully, though, he didn't faint like I thought he would. "You okay?" I asked.

"Yeah, I think so..." he said, his voice suddenly sounding weakened. I walked him over to the couch. Calum brought the bin over and set it beside him. Luke sat there with his head in his hands. "God, Cash, I feel worse than I did yesterday... I passed out yesterday. How could I feel even worse?" He asked, looking up at me with unshed tears pooling in his eyes.

"You passed out yesterday?" Why are you even here?" I asked, crouching down in front of him. He shrugged.

"I felt better after Fenton-" I held my hand up to stop him. Fenton. I needed no more information. "What?" He asked, clearly confused.

"Fenton should have told you to stay home, or back at the hotel, excuse me," I corrected. "Fenton doesn't exactly have a good bedside manner, and to be honest, he doesn't have the greatest track record since joining the team," he hummed, letting his head drop back down. "He didn't prescribe you anything?" Luke shook his head. "Alright, well, I'll have to start you on some fluids," Luke's head shot up and he whimpered.

"I really hate needles." He shivered, drawing himself away from me with a sniffle. It dawned on me that he was scared. 

"I promise I'll be really gentle. You won't feel a thing Luke," he seemed unsure, but nodded and gave me his arm.

"Damn. Fenton struggled with Luke yesterday," Ashton gasped, gaping at the sight.

"I-I trust Cash more," Luke stammered. I felt my face heat up as I gave a bashful smile. 

"Awe, that's sweet," I responded, earning a laugh from everyone. I grabbed my trusty IV pole from the bottom of my bag and burst out laughing as the boys all looked at me when I set it up. It was as if I had just done a manic trick.

"The fuck, are you Houdini or something?" Michael mused, eyeing the device. I laughed again.

"It's a retractable folding IV pole. It's pretty cool, isn't it?" They all nodded with their mouths still hanging open. It was always amusing to see people's reactions to this thing. "It's only about a foot in length when it's fully retracted so it's very easy for me to stow it away in my med bag," the shock from it had worn off by the time I finished my little spiel about my little toy.

"Can I lay down?" Luke asked quietly. I nodded, helping him get comfortable.

"Do you think you guys could see if there are any blankets and pillows? He may get cold," I requested. Calum nodded and quickly left the room while Ashton checked the dressing room for some bedding. "Okay, Luke, which arm did Fenton use yesterday?" Luke held out the arm that was against the back of the couch. I nodded and lightly grabbed hold of the one closest to me. I prepped it, and Luke nearly cinched away. I reminded him to breathe and gave him a moment before trying to insert the needle.

He cracked one of his eyes open and chanced looking over at his arm. I already had the needle in. "Whoa... I really didn't feel it," he gasped, staring at me while I got the PICC line taped down. I grinned at him and connected the saline.

"Just relax. I'm going to go talk to Matt. Let's see if you can get another day to get better," I got up and went to search for their manager. As I walked out, I actually bumped into Matt. 

"My bad, I was on my way to see if the boys were ready," he explained, glancing at his watch. 

I let out a heavy sigh. "Actually, I was coming to ask you about that. Luke is still really sick, I gave him some things to make him feel better, but he definitely can't go on stage tonight," I explained. 

Matt pinched the bridge of his nose and shook his head slightly. "The concert is in less than an hour. How are we supposed to cancel now?" he asked. It looked like he was mostly asking himself those questions. 

Calum's POV:

Matt had tried talking to management, but they weren't having it. They insisted that he was fine after being on break for two days. Luke had to go on stage tonight. When Matt told Luke, he insisted he was fine. Mostly, he even seemed it. It was like he was pumped to get out there. Maybe it was because he had been hauled up in the hotel room for the last two to three days.

The crowd roared when Ashton ran on stage. He carefully stood on the drummer's stool and pumped his fist in the air. "Let's go!" Michael yelled over the audience's cheers. We all rushed to our usual spots, with Michael standing on the speaker at the front of the stage. All our hands were in the air as Ashton began drumming the beat.

The first song was She Looks So Perfect. We had talked to Luke right before coming on stage about the jump. He said he wanted us to act as if nothing was wrong and that he would let us know if he started feeling ill again.

I had kept an eye on him throughout the show and small interview. Besides him seeming a little sluggish at times and his voice being shaky, he did alright. Towards the end, it had become evident that he was feeling a tad under the weather, but he pulled through brilliantly. 

If I hadn't been with Luke, I wouldn't have even thought he had been sick. Luke was on the mend and we all knew it would take time for him to fully recover. At least the concert had been a success.

**Author's Note:**

> 13,243 words! I think that makes this the longest story I've ever written. Hopefully you guys enjoyed this. Let me know in the comments!
> 
> ***Also, if anyone wants to help me come up with a better title for this, please do!***


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